Stop Lead Poisoning From Destroying Our Wildlife
Final signature count: 14,810
14,810 signatures toward our 50,000 goal
Sponsor: The Rainforest Site
Tens of thousands of tons of lead are being deposited into our environment every year, leading to serious disease and death.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a ban on the use of lead ammunition and fishing tackle in 2017, an Obama-era rule aimed at protecting birds and fish from lead poisoning. Within a few days, following the arrival of a new administration, the ban was lifted1.
Some argue that allowing lead ammunition and fishing tackle opens recreational opportunities to more than just wealthy landowners, but a 2012 study from the University of Guelph found the retail price for most calibers of lead bullets was comparable to their non-toxic counterparts3.
The Interior Department is responsible for managing the conservation of fish, wildlife and their habitat. That job covers about one-fifth of the land in the United States4. The allowance of lead ammunition and fishing tackle on more than 500 million of America’s nearly 700 million hunting-approved acres can and has already had an impact on native fauna. Tens of thousands of tons of lead are being deposited into our environment every year, causing the deaths of between 10 and 20 million birds and other animals — including more than 130 species.4.
Lead poisoning from ammo is a major threat to the lives of endangered California condors, a fact which prompted the state to pass a bill requiring all lead hunting ammunition to be phased out by 2019. Bald eagles and other scavengers throughout the central and eastern U.S. are also frequent victims of lead poisoning from ammunition, ingesting bullet fragments found in carcasses5.
Humans who consume animals killed with lead bullets are also at risk. A 2009 study from researchers at the University of North Dakota School of Medicine found 59 of 100 randomly selected packages of ground venison donated to the Community Action Food Pantry in North Dakota in the fall of 2007 were contaminated with lead fragments6.
We’ve known for thousands of years that lead is a deadly toxin, yet it’s only in recent decades that we’ve taken it out of gasoline, paint, and other substances. The lingering effects of lead pipes still pose hazards for communities, as we have seen in the ongoing crisis in Flint, Michigan, and elsewhere in the United States2.
The health of our country’s fish, wildlife, and as well all Americans should not be threatened by lead poisoning. Sign the petition below and demand the Department of Interior ban the use of lead ammunition and fishing tackle on public lands.